Broken China
by Kyrie Sanctus
Summary: 8 Up!Unfortunately for Ren, Jun has invited Horohoro to accompany them to China. But is Ren’s disgust at this situation just a cover up for the feelings he hasn’t realized he could have for the shaman of ice? A bit plotless, just a device for fluff.
1. Dance One: Learning Chinese

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Title Broken China

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Author Kyrie Sanctus

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Rating PG-13 for Shounen-ai situations.

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Begun September 27, 2003

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Finished ???

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Chapters 1/??

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Synopsis Unfortunately for Ren, Jun has invited Horohoro to accompany them to China. But perhaps, Ren's disgust at this situation is just a cover up for the feelings he hasn't realized he could have for the shaman of ice? A bit plotless, just a device for fluff. HoroRen.

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Comments Well, the title does NOT refer to the many plates I've broken in trying to come up with an idea for a HoroRen story good enough to post on FF.net. Instead, it's about China. You know, the country? Broken. Not literally broken, but rather.. .. It's symbolism! Ren's feelings about Horohoro going to China with them are like.. Mixed, you know? The inspiration for this came from me buying a Chinese dictionary and looking up the word 'peach.' Yep. That's how it all got started.

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Dedications this goes out to Tanjo, for being the one who made me interested in the Chinese language in the first place. Katie, for no darn reason. Krissy, for always being the little inspiration in my life, and whoever else writes HoroRen fanfics. Because I didn't want you to be alone anymore!

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Disclaimer I own no rights to Shaman King, it's plots, or it's characters. Those are all belong to the masterful Hiroyuki Takei. However, I do own the Chinese dictionary used in making all of these pretty Chinese words possible!

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Broken China

Dance One: Learning Chinese

"Taozi.. Pingguo.. Juzi.. Xigua!" Horohoro was seated Indian style on the floor in the hotel room, a book in one hand, and the other pointing down at each of a various assortment of fruits before him. He looked rather relaxed in just a black t-shirt and his shorts, hair, as usual pulled away from his face by his headband. 

He heard something stir from behind him, so he turned.

"What are you doing?"

Tao Ren stood, arms crossed, looking at his teammate, who had turned to face him completely. Horohoro held the book up, and began to explain. "I'm learning Chinese! See? I've got a book and everything!"

He raised an eyebrow. "And were did you acquire this book?"

"Jun gave it to me."

There was silence for a moment.

"Why?"

"Well," he started, looking back over to the small beige and bright orange book he held before him. "She said I'm going to need it for when I go with you two to China."

"When you _what_?"

"When I go with you to China."

Another silence, and then Ren shook his head. "Sorry, I thought you said that Jun gave you that Chinese dictionary because she said you'll need it for when you go with us to China."

"That's what I said, Ren."

Ren just stood there for a moment, staring down at the bluenette, who was slowly turning back to his fruit and book. He clenched and unclenched his fists a few times, watching him recite the words for pedestrian and task over and over again.

Suddenly all the blood seemed to rush to his head at once and he turned, stomping away, leaving Horohoro to practice 'renwu' and 'xingren' by himself.

"Jun!" He yelled as soon as he entered her room. She was lain out on her bed, her back to him, fingering boredly through a late April issue of some random American magazine, even though it was in the middle of July. Her reply? "Hai, Ren?"

He stomped over to her, standing behind her, fuming like a recently pulled from the oven baked potato. "What. Did. You. Mean. By. Giving. That. Idiot. A. Chinese. Dictionary. And. Telling. Him. We. Were. Taking. Him. To. China?" All of his words seemed to be punctuated by a heaving breath.

"Simply that," she stared, turning the page to a section about 'How to Steal Your Best Friend's Man Without Causing Harm to Your Relationship.' "I thought you might want a companion to come along with us this time. I think you'd enjoy his company."

"Yes, but.. WHY HIM?"

Jun looked over her shoulder at him, raising her eyebrows. "What's wrong with him? He seems to be the one of your friends you're closest to besides Yoh, and you know Yoh would never go to China again, not without Anna-san at least."

Ren tapped his foot impatiently. Her calm attitude wasn't helping his anger at all. He tried not to vent it out, not to his sister, at least, but couldn't help the tenseness of his voice. "Yes, but…"

"No buts. He's going with us. I already told him that he is, and he's in there right now, practicing Chinese with that manual I gave him, isn't he?" Jun's prediction was right on, and Ren cringed and his cheeks tinted pink. "Father has even approved of it. Said you might enjoy some company while you relax." This made him cringe further. Since when did his father care about him having company? "He and mother are rather lonely, you know. No one comes to visit. Just family." So that's what it was. They just wanted to show off? "There's no getting out of it, Ren." Well why not? "That's final. Now, if you'll excuse me."

She rose and closed her magazine, sliding it into the drawer on the dresser beside the bed. She walked over to him. Although he was a boy, she was still 4 years older, and had an advantage in height. Her brother was much shorter than she, even at that age. She placed a hand on his shoulder. "I know you'll have fun, once we get there. Just wait and see." She kissed his cheek gently before exiting.

Ren watched her exit before kicking the dresser as hard as he could. "KISAMA!!"

"Yanshi," he spoke aloud, looking over at his partner on the other side of the couch, who was holding the same copy of the Chinese manual he was. Jun smiled and nodded, and he looked back down to his book. "Cesuo."

She placed her hand on his book and pulled it gently from his hands, closing it, and placing it in a neat stack on the table before them. "You're doing very well. You know a lot of words already." She smiled. "I didn't expect you to be such a quick learner."

Horohoro rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, since I had to learn Ainu _after_ I learned Japanese, it made studying for learning languages a lot easier." He smiled back. 

"You're very proud of being Ainu, aren't you?"

He nodded.

"Just like you and Ren are proud to be Chinese."

Another smile. "You're right."

They sat there for a moment, basking in the glow of a good afternoon spent doing something constructive. Neither of them had seen Ren since the previous day, yet neither of them were worried. Ren disappearing for days at a time when he was upset and ready to strike the nearest living person dead was a normal occurrence.

"He really doesn't mean to be that cruel," Jun started, as if she felt like she needed to explain her brother's behavior. "Really. He's actually a very sweet person. But something about you, just like Yoh and everyone else, strikes up this need in him to be better than he already is. He feels like you are all competition for him. In a sense, you are, but.. I suppose he doesn't see it as friendly rivalry, and rather.. A war."

Horohoro sighed. "I understand where he's coming from. After all.. I've always felt the need to be better than Yoh. It just doesn't work that way, though."

"You're right."

They stared out the window for a moment, the sun setting slowly, bringing bright oranges and yellows to the sky. "I think he really wants you to go. To China."

"I hope so," he turned to look at her, and smiled. "After all, I'm going for more than the food this time!" 

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Author's End-note What did you think so far? I'm going to continue it, even though it's plotless. Like I said. Fluff device! Anyway, if you liked it, please review. If you hated it, please review. If you think I'm a crap writer and that I need to quit at it before I put all of the actually talented writers into cardiac-arrest, please review _then_ jump off a bridge. Just kidding. 


	2. Dance Two: Traveling Chinese

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Title Broken China

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Author Kyrie Sanctus

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Rating PG-13 for Shounen-ai situations.

****

Begun September 27, 2003

****

Finished ???

****

Chapters 1/??

****

Synopsis Unfortunately for Ren, Jun has invited Horohoro to accompany them to China. But perhaps, Ren's disgust at this situation is just a cover up for the feelings he hasn't realized he could have for the shaman of ice? A bit plotless, just a device for fluff. HoroRen.

****

Comments Well, the title does NOT refer to the many plates I've broken in trying to come up with an idea for a HoroRen story good enough to post on FF.net. Instead, it's about China. You know, the country? Broken. Not literally broken, but rather.. .. It's symbolism! Ren's feelings about Horohoro going to China with them are like.. Mixed, you know? The inspiration for this came from me buying a Chinese dictionary and looking up the word 'peach.' Yep. That's how it all got started.

****

Dedications this goes out to Tanjo, for being the one who made me interested in the Chinese language in the first place. Katie, for no darn reason. Krissy, for always being the little inspiration in my life, and whoever else writes HoroRen fanfics. Because I didn't want you to be alone anymore!

****

Disclaimer I own no rights to Shaman King, it's plots, or it's characters. Those are all belong to the masterful Hiroyuki Takei. However, I do own the Chinese dictionary used in making all of these pretty Chinese words possible!

****

Broken China

Dance Two: Traveling Chinese

It had been three days since Jun had rained on his parade, and Ren was in utter misery. Just the thought of Horohoro being there the whole time he was trying to relax… It annoyed him. He'd been in his room the majority of the time since he'd discovered Horohoro with the Chinese dictionary.

Every once in a while, Jun would come to his door and knock, asking him to come out, but he didn't budge. And in regular intervals he heard one of them going into or exiting the bathroom, and once or twice a day he would hear running footsteps outside his door. At one time, he heard his sister and _that moron _practicing his Chinese in the main room.

He sighed and noticed the pained hole in his stomach. _Damn, _he thought, holding his hand over it. _I forgot. I haven't eaten since yesterday. _But he didn't want to leave his room, not right now at least. He would wait until later that night, when they both were asleep. For now, he'd just go to sleep to ward off the pain.

When he shook awake it was midnight. He sat up, pushing the hair out of his face, the sweat from sleeping in the afternoon saturating his underarms. He pulled his shirt off, freeing himself of the warm that had caused this.

He exited the room. Everything was quiet around him. _They must be in bed already, _he started down the hall. Turning the corner, he peered into the kitchen. It was completely dark in there. He walked in and over to the fridge, opening it with one hand. The light illuminated half of the room, and also, the figure perched up on the counter beside it.

Ren's eyes glanced sideways as he put his hand on the milk, and he jumped at the sight of the figure, sloshing a bit of the open milk container's liquid on the shadow's face.

"What the hell are you doing in here?! Why aren't you in bed?!"

"Ungh," the figure was wiping it's face on it's sleeve, cleaning the milk up. "I was hungry. God, Ren, why did you have to.. Now I'm gonna smell bad."

Ren was about to retort with a snide comment about how Horohoro already smelled bad anyway, but he was stopped by the movement of the Ainu sliding off of the counter to the floor, where he pulled his jacket up over his head and off.

The jacket was thrown onto an opposing counter, and Horohoro leaned back, picking his snack back up. He took a bite of it, and looked over at Ren, who hadn't yet noticed that he was staring at him. He waved his hand in front of his face, which shook him awake.

Ren jumped and turned away, closing the fridge with his foot. He walked to the cabinet and opened it, pulling out a glass. Filling it to the brim, he turned to return the milk to it's rightful place in the fridge, however, he tripped over the leg of one of the chairs at the table which hadn't been pushed in all the wall.

As he was about to hit the floor he felt a pair of arms around his own, and felt himself being pulled back up to stand in an upright position. "Heh. Got you in the nick of time," Horohoro commented before stepping away. Ren, flush-faced, continued his journey to the fridge and put the milk in, kicking the chair in before he returned to his milk. 

Horohoro had known not to expect a 'thank you,' from Ren, so he wasn't anticipating anything. He sat down at the table, watching him from across the way. Striking up a conversation would be a dumb thing to do, but.. We all know Horohoro.

"Ren, how come you don't want me to go to China?"

There was stillness as Ren tried to think up an answer. One came to mind rather quickly.

"Because you're a moron."

"Thanks.. I guess."

They both sat there, neither looking at the other, studying their milk or snack.

"I guess it won't be so bad.."

Horohoro looked up at Ren, who was taking another sip as before he continued.

"As long as you stay away from me." He slid off of the counter and walked to the sink, placing his glass inside it. He exited the kitchen, leaving Horohoro with a scowl.

"Ren! Hurry it up!" Jun called from the front door. She and Horohoro had packed the day before, but her little brother, although he usually didn't rush, was taking his time an hour and a half before the train left the station. Naturally annoyed, she tapped her foot.

Horohoro was standing beside her, holding his bag on his shoulder, his dictionary in his other hand. He looked over to the man opposite him, Bailong, who was holding all of Jun's luggage. There was no response from Ren for a moment, and Jun screamed out to him again.

"REN!!"

Ren emerged from his room, holding a black duffel bag. He stopped in the hallway and set it down, pulling his coat around his body and wrapping his muffler around his neck. He then bent to pick the bag back up and walked to the door, staring at the two of them in the utmost disgust. "Ready."

Jun's snarl turned into a bright smile, and she nodded to Bailong to open the door. He did so, and she exited first, followed by Ren, then Horohoro, then Bailong himself, who turned off the last light and closed the door.

The taxi ride to the train station hadn't been a long one, but it had been quiet. No one really wanted to say anything to scare the driver, who was already quite scared at the fact that Lee Bailong was sitting in his front seat beside him and looked rather.. Well, dead.

Jun had decided it a good idea to disguise Bailong further, so before she stepped out of the car to pull a toboggan over his head before they entered the train station. Then, there they stood, watching and waiting for their train.

Now on the train, Jun and Bailong had taken seats opposite each other, with Horohoro beside Bailong. Ren, however, was wandering the train. He did _not _want to sit with that _idiot _for longer than he had to, especially since he was going to be with him for the next month or so.

He walked down the aisle of the next car over, looking at the people sitting, relaxing in there seats. A few children were arguing over a toy, a pair of teenagers were in the middle of a game of Go, an old man slept, while his middle-aged daughter flipped through a book.

Ren wished he could have been like one of those people, never having too much to worry about a one time. He, like Yoh, wished he could ease himself of all the problems he had. That was his one fear about returning to China. Although, he knew something had changed in his father since he had been there last.

He sat down in a seat that wasn't his and looked out the window, wishing he was on his return trip rather than the one to get there.

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Author's End-Note Well, that was the second chapter. Sorry it was so short! I've had a trying night.. Well, now they're on their way to China.. I promise this fanfic won't be unbearably long, but I'll make it long enough to be enjoyable. ^^ Hmm.. What else would I like to address? Oh yeah! Thanks a lot to everyone who reviewed the first chapter. It means a lot to me! Please continue to review and enjoy _this_ fanfic! I know it's the overused 'Ren goes back to China,' scenario, but I'm hoping my twist is making it a different experience! ^^ Besides, we all know we like Horohoro in pain… … ( Believe it or not, he _is_ my favorite character. _Everyone_ loves to torture their favorite! ) Yeah. Oh, and to address one of the reviewers.. Tsukamaete Senshi, unfortunately, I work on a basis that.. Well, there needs to be angst before I can reach the fluff.. I'm hoping, for now, since I updated quickly, that the little cute moment with Horohoro catching Ren (and Ren **BLUSHING**!) will suffice.. I'll try! ^^ I'm not the fluff master like Em0tions ( Katie. ) 

And, like I said last time:

Anyway, if you liked it, please review. If you hated it, please review. If you think I'm a crap writer and that I need to quit at it before I put all of the actually talented writers into cardiac-arrest, please review _then_ jump off a bridge. Just kidding.


	3. Dance Three: Acting Chinese

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Title Broken China

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Author Kyrie Sanctus

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Rating PG-13 for Shounen-ai situations.

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Begun September 27, 2003

****

Finished ???

****

Chapters 3/??

****

Synopsis Unfortunately for Ren, Jun has invited Horohoro to accompany them to China. But perhaps, Ren's disgust at this situation is just a cover up for the feelings he hasn't realized he could have for the shaman of ice? A bit plotless, just a device for fluff. HoroRen.

****

Comments Well, the title does NOT refer to the many plates I've broken in trying to come up with an idea for a HoroRen story good enough to post on FF.net. Instead, it's about China. You know, the country? Broken. Not literally broken, but rather.. .. It's symbolism! Ren's feelings about Horohoro going to China with them are like.. Mixed, you know? The inspiration for this came from me buying a Chinese dictionary and looking up the word 'peach.' Yep. That's how it all got started.

****

Dedications this goes out to Tanjo, for being the one who made me interested in the Chinese language in the first place. Katie, for no darn reason. Krissy, for always being the little inspiration in my life, and whoever else writes HoroRen fanfics. Because I didn't want you to be alone anymore!

****

Disclaimer I own no rights to Shaman King, it's plots, or it's characters. Those are all belong to the masterful Hiroyuki Takei. However, I do own the Chinese dictionary used in making all of these pretty Chinese words possible!

****

Broken China

Dance Three: Acting Chinese

After unloading the train, the foursome stood, waiting to be picked up. Ren had returned halfway through the train ride to the next country, but hadn't said much of anything to either Jun or Horohoro. He couldn't help but feel completely alone in the world. He sighed, glancing, every once in a while, over to his companions.

Horohoro was looking around excitedly. This reminded Ren that his last visit to China hadn't been a pleasant one. Instead of arriving on peaceful terms, they had both come with a purpose more than visiting family. Ren's muffler concealed a smile. Perhaps he was thankful that Horohoro had come along that one time?

__

No, that can't be, he thought, shaking the thought from his head. _I didn't need that idiot then. I _don't_ need him now. Despite what Jun says, I am perfectly fine on my own. I need no one. I am _Tao Ren_, damnit. _

Jun sighed. "I suppose father thought we were arriving on the 5:00 train. She looked around, through the hustle and bustle of the Chinese street they were stranded on. "I suppose we could get some lunch? We've got 3 hours before father will come to pick us up."

So, the decision was to get some lunch. They chose a restaurant and sat down, all placing their bags beside the chair they had chosen to reside in. After they ordered food ( Jun ordered for Horohoro ) and ate, Jun decided it was a good idea to call their father, taking Bailong with her. 

Ren was relaxed in his chair, looking around at his familiar homeland. The knots in his stomach were easing, and his unseen homesickness was being cured. Then, leaning forward, he watched Horohoro across from him, who was ogling the China that surrounded him.

"Idiot," well, Ren _was_ the type to start a conversation with an insult. "You act like you've never been here before. Get that stupid look off of your face already."

Horohoro pouted. "Well, I've been here before, but never to enjoy the sites.. I mean, when we came, we went straight for your house. We didn't stop to look around or anything."

Ren felt a surge of pain in his chest again. He opened his mouth to apologize, but clamped it shut before he could say anything. "Yeah. We came here to save your sorry ass from your Dad."

Two seconds flat, Ren had his kwan-dao to the Ainu's neck. His eyes were bulging, and his hands were raised in surrender. "I was kidding, I was kidding!" Ren sat back down, his kwan-dao, almost magically, disappearing as fast as it had been retrieved. "We were all worried about you."

"Well, in case you haven't noticed, I don't _need_ your help."

"Needed it then, didn't you?"

"Do you want me to get the kwan-dao back out?"

"Er--no, sorry."

"Thought so."

Ren was still annoyed, however, as Horohoro was still turning in his chair to look at people walking by, or staring over his shoulder at certain buildings. It was when he saw Jun and Bailong returning, that Ren finally stopped worrying about how bad Horohoro was making him look, and perked up his ears to what Jun had to say.

"Well, I have some good news and some bad news," she started as Bailong pulled her seat out for her and she sat down, taking a sip of the tea she'd left on the table. "The bad news is that father can't come pick us up until tomorrow." Ren's face was stricken with horror, Horohoro's with excitement. "The good news is, he has set up a room in a hotel for us to stay the night. Unfortunately, we've only got 3 rooms, and I'm not sleeping with Bailong or either of you. So you will both share a room, and Bailong and I will have our own."

Ren's protest to this didn't take more than 3 seconds to arise. But it was beaten down by Jun's retort. "No buts."

Ren and Horohoro opened the door to the hotel room to find…

"One bed?"

"This is _not_ happening to me."

"It's okay," Horohoro assured, walking over to a chair and setting his bag down before pulling the zipper on his coat down to it's hem. "I can sleep on the floor. I don't have a problem with it." He pulled his jacket off and just tossed it casually to the chair, stretching his bare arms up, his black tank-top coming with his shoulders to expose some stomach.

Ren kept his same scowl and placed his bag on the bed, unwrapping himself from his muffler. He placed it on the hook hanging from the wall that separated the bed from the bathroom, and pulled his heavy coat from his shoulders, draping it over the chair beside the bed.

Horohoro sat down in the other chair at the table and looked out the window. The sun was still high in the sky. Going to bed wasn't to be fathomed. He sighed with a smile and continued to gaze out the window, until he could feel a pair of piercing golden eyes staring straight at him from behind. He looked over his shoulder, to find Ren watching him from across the room.

Ren's eyes quickly averted, and Horohoro raised his eyebrows. "Ren?"

"Hmm?"

"You wanna.. … go for a walk?"

"Tch. No."

Horohoro pouted. "Please?"

"… Fine."

So both boys bundled up, and exited the room.

When they returned, Horohoro was pink the face but smiling, and Ren was, of course, scowling, his mouth and nose tucked into his yellow muffler. As, once again, they both shed their clothes, Ren having to turn on the light as it had gotten dark since they had gotten back, Horohoro collapsed backwards on the bed. "That was a nice walk."

Ren sat beside him to pull his boots from his feet, happy to be back inside.

__

"Would you stop bouncing around already?" Ren glowered the bluenette, who was bouncing along beside him. "It's making you look like even more of an idiot than you already are."

Horohoro desisted, but the words Ren had added on to the end of that plea of his occlusion hit Horohoro like a brick 20 seconds later. "Hey! Take that back! I'm not_ an idiot." However, the question of his idiocy had been dropped as quickly as it had come up. Thankfully for Ren._

"Move," Ren commanded pointedly, unfolding the blankets from the top of his bed. "I'm going to sleep." 

Horohoro moved off of the bed slowly, but did not make himself a place on the floor. "I'm going to go talk to Jun." He headed for the door and was out. Ren sighed, happy to be alone, but wondering what was up with the sudden connection between his sister and the Ainu imbecile anyway…

"Jun?"

Horohoro opened the door of the room Jun was staying in to find her laying on her bed in a jade green robe, inspecting her toenails. Her hair was in a low ponytail, and her dress and coat were hanging on a hook on the wall. On the bed beside her was a spread of magazines, and a small cosmetics bag. 

"Oh! It's you! Come in!" She folded her legs underneath her and picked up a bottle of green nail-polish, uncapping it and starting to run the bristles over her long, manicured cuticles. 

Horohoro sat on the bed across from her, and watched her for a moment. "So?"

"Oh, yeah! .. Well, we went on a walk."

"And?"

"I couldn't.."

She sighed, capping off the bottle after finishing one hand, she blew on it, watching his nervous twitching across from her. "I see. Scared?"

His lip twitched. "Yeah."

"Don't worry. You've got plenty of time."

"… I know."

"Good."

****

Author's End-Notes Aah, suspense. Don't you love it? Sorry for taking so long with this one.. I promised myself that I would get this fanfic out to you guys as fast as I could, but it's a little bit harder on the week than during the weekends, you know? That, and I have Driver's Ed in the afternoon, so my me-time is cut in half. UGH, why can't they just give me a car and let me GO? XD

Anyway, I hope you liked it. Not any fluff in this chapter, but it's building up to it. Well.. Okay, Em0tions will say that the kwan-dao moment was fluffy, but.. She's a hopeless romantic. XD Anyway! 

If you liked it, please review. If you hated it, please review. If you think I'm a crap writer and that I need to quit at it before I put all of the actually talented writers into cardiac-arrest, please review _then_ jump off a bridge. Just kidding.


	4. Dance Four: Resting Chinese

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Title Broken China

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Author Kyrie Sanctus

****

Rating PG-13 for Shounen-ai situations.

****

Begun September 27, 2003

****

Finished ???

****

Chapters 4/??

****

Synopsis Unfortunately for Ren, Jun has invited Horohoro to accompany them to China. But perhaps, Ren's disgust at this situation is just a cover up for the feelings he hasn't realized he could have for the shaman of ice? A bit plotless, just a device for fluff. HoroRen.

****

Comments Well, the title does NOT refer to the many plates I've broken in trying to come up with an idea for a HoroRen story good enough to post on FF.net. Instead, it's about China. You know, the country? Broken. Not literally broken, but rather.. .. It's symbolism! Ren's feelings about Horohoro going to China with them are like.. Mixed, you know? The inspiration for this came from me buying a Chinese dictionary and looking up the word 'peach.' Yep. That's how it all got started.

****

Dedications this goes out to Tanjo, for being the one who made me interested in the Chinese language in the first place. Katie, for no darn reason. Krissy, for always being the little inspiration in my life, and whoever else writes HoroRen fanfics. Because I didn't want you to be alone anymore!

****

Disclaimer I own no rights to Shaman King, it's plots, or it's characters. Those are all belong to the masterful Hiroyuki Takei. However, I do own the Chinese dictionary used in making all of these pretty Chinese words possible!

****

Broken China

Dance Four: Resting Chinese

Horohoro awoke to the feel of a few toes nudging into his side. He opened his eyes sleepily, looking up to the owner of the toes, whose golden eyes were staring down at him from it's perch on the bed. He sat up, pushing his hair out of his face. "You were snoring."

The statement want pointed and cold. Horohoro frowned. _You woke me up for _that? "Sorry. Can't help it." He laid back down, away from him, and felt a blanket drop from the bed onto his back. He blinked, and sat up again, now to find Ren laying horizontally, with his back to him.

"You were shivering, too."

"Oh.. Thanks." He laid back down, facing the bed, wrapping the blanket around himself. He had to fold his legs to cover them completely, but it worked fine. He exhaled, and closed his eyes, ready to fall back to his slumber when.

"Horohoro?"

"Hm?"

Ren paused for a moment, as if to think. This only aroused Horohoro's attentions more. After a few more seconds silence, he began his question. "Why did you want to come here so bad?"

Not completely shocked by Ren's question, but not exactly on-guard, either, Horohoro had to brainstorm an answer before he could give it. He decided stuttering through a few ideas would be answer enough, for now. "Well, you see, I.. I wanted to stay with you, I guess. You and Jun. You guys are my best friends, and.. I didn't want you to be alone." He found, however, that the truth flowed from his lips much more freely.

"That's what Jun said," Ren sighed from above, rolling over to peer down at the ice shaman cuddled with himself on the floor. "And it's an annoying answer."

"But it's true. It's what Jun had said to me when she asked me to go to China with you guys, and I didn't know it then, but I guess that reason sorta grew on me."

"So you weren't going to come before then?"

"Well," he turned to his back, looking up at the ceiling. "No? But I guess it was probably because I wasn't invited. It's not really.. Um, polite to go somewhere without being asked, you know."

Ren snorted. "Never stopped you before."

"What's that--?!"

"Shut up, Horohoro."

There was a tense moment of semi-anger between the two of them before Horohoro started to snicker under his breath. He could feel the tension of, not Ren's heat in rage, but rather, a kind of light-hearted fury which, in no sense, was realistic.

"Wow. Is that you laughing up there?"

"No, you idiot. That was the bed creaking. And what was that hideous noise you were making a moment ago?"

"Oh. That was the.. Uhh.. Drawer."

"What drawer?"

"The drawer I'm.. … er, opening."

"You're not even near a drawer, fool."

"… … I know."

This time, Horohoro _knew_ he heard Ren chuckling. 

"Horohoro?"

"What is it now?!" Horohoro exclaimed with a fake discontentment.

Ren chortled, but continued. "Did you want to sleep up here with me?"

Suddenly, all the laughter that had filled the room moments before seemed to glide out the window and replace itself with a seriously so thick, even a knife wouldn't penetrate it. Maybe the sudden feeling of a ten-ton brick was just on Horohoro's chest?

It wasn't however. Ren had felt his own chest tighten up with asking this question. After all, he was inviting Horohoro to sleep with him. God, what would his mother think?

Horohoro sat up, blue orbs meeting golden ones, who were too lost looking to be stern. The only thing on Horohoro's mind at the moment, was trying to escape the situation for now. After all, he'd already said just earlier that night that he wasn't ready to admit that he…

But how would Ren know about that? "Are you sure?"

Ren nodded. "I wouldn't have asked if I wasn't sure."

Horohoro got onto his knees and pushed himself off of the floor, collecting the blanket in his hands. Ren scooted over to the edge of the bed to make room for Horohoro to lay, and he did so, taking up a little less space than Ren had imagined. He rolled back over. It wasn't too big of a bed, so when he did so, he felt Horohoro's knees hit into his thigh.

Both boys, however uncomfortable being so close to each other, closed their eyes and tried to stray themselves to sleep before they found themselves in any more peculiar predicaments.

When Horohoro woke up he was alone in the bed, quite unlike he had been when he had fallen asleep. He groped around for the blanket which had been callously thrown to the floor by the bed's other occupant, and pulled it around himself. Going back to sleep, however, was the last thing on his mind.

He could barely see anything around him, as the sun was pouring in at such an angle that it blinded him, so keeping his eyes open was a hard thing to do. He turned his head from the sun, only to notice.. _When did the floor get so soft and high up? _He sat up, feet touching the floor, before he realized. _Oh, I'm in the bed._

He stood up and stretched his arms out, scratching his stomach with his right hand. He walked over to the chair where he'd left his stuff and pulled a white shirt out of his bag, slipping it over his head. He was pulling his pants on when envisaged that: _Wasn't Ren supposed to sleep on the bed._

He stopped moving for a second more, before his eyes engorged. _Ren _did_ sleep on the bed! _He winced and turned around. _And I guess I did, too._

The door to the bathroom opened to reveal Ren, wearing nothing but a towel around his waist. He looked over at Horohoro, who was staring dumbfounded at the bed like it had just spoken to him. Ren's hesitation ended there as he approached his things and opened his bag. Being shameless, he dressed.

When Ren had turned back around, he saw a flush-faced Horohoro hurrying to button his pants and put his socks on. He tossed the towel on the bed and walked back into the bathroom.

Horohoro exhaled and sat down on the edge of the bed. "Well, that was the sight of a lifetime.." He slapped himself after saying that aloud. Ren stepped back out and put his shoes on, looking himself in the mirror before exiting the room. Horohoro exhaled, figuring he was going to visit Jun.

"You _what_?" Jun giggled, poking Horohoro in the arm at the bus stop. Ren was across the street, buying tickets for them to ride, and had left she and the ice boy alone. It was crowded enough, even at this time of day, for their conversation to be shielded by the passing people.

Horohoro sighed, feeling his cheeks tinge. "We slept together. In the same bed." Jun giggled again. "It's not that funny, you know!"

"Oh, but it is! I thought that's what you wanted?"

"Well, it is, but…" He bit his lip. "Something just felt weird about it, is all."

"Hm."

They both looked up to find Ren crossing the street towards them. Their conversation was over.

****

Author's End-Notes And there's chapter 4 for you. Man, I had a really bad feeling about this chapter. I'm so not good at chapters. One-shots suit me much better, but I needed.. Expansion, I guess. ^_^; 

So, what did you think? Fluff? I thought so, sort of. I'm so not a fluff person. I write rape better, I think. XD But who wants to read about that? Well, other than me.. Well, Silver-kun, too, considering she really wants me to finish 'The Bet.' ^_^ For her entertainment, I shall give a small sneak preview, right here! ( Anyone who disagrees with HaoxLyserg can just.. Scroll on down!):

__

"What bet?" The shorter-haired one growled, straightening his attire. He looked over at his most hated enemy, who was working his gloves from his wrists. He narrowed his eyebrows, but waited patiently for his response.

The brunette giggled, tossing his hair off of his shoulders. "You said 'you can bet on it.' Well, you didn't kill me, so you lose the bet. If you lose, I win." He levered himself onto his knees, crawling over to the weaker shaman.

This caused him to frown, watching his once-prey circle him. "And you know what I want, don't you?" The English boy shook his head, still watching with his hatred-filled eyes. "Oh, well, it's quite simple!"

"What is it, then?"

"I want… You."

And there you have it. A little teaser. I'll try to work on it some more, but right now I'm rather captivated by HoroxRen. 'The Bet' was actually an RP done between Katie and I (I'm using it as a reference to the fanfic.) and contains.. Hm, explicit stuff. I'll be trying on it.

As for now, please review and await my next chapter! ^_^


	5. Dance Five: Breaking Chinese

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Title Broken China

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Author Kyrie Sanctus

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Rating PG-13 for Shounen-ai situations.

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Begun September 27, 2003

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Finished ???

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Chapters 5/??

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Synopsis Unfortunately for Ren, Jun has invited Horohoro to accompany them to China. But perhaps, Ren's disgust at this situation is just a cover up for the feelings he hasn't realized he could have for the shaman of ice? A bit plotless, just a device for fluff. HoroRen.

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Comments Well, the title does NOT refer to the many plates I've broken in trying to come up with an idea for a HoroRen story good enough to post on FF.net. Instead, it's about China. You know, the country? Broken. Not literally broken, but rather.. .. It's symbolism! Ren's feelings about Horohoro going to China with them are like.. Mixed, you know? The inspiration for this came from me buying a Chinese dictionary and looking up the word 'peach.' Yep. That's how it all got started.

****

Dedications this goes out to Tanjo, for being the one who made me interested in the Chinese language in the first place. Katie, for no darn reason. Krissy, for always being the little inspiration in my life, and whoever else writes HoroRen fanfics. Because I didn't want you to be alone anymore!

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Disclaimer I own no rights to Shaman King, it's plots, or it's characters. Those are all belong to the masterful Hiroyuki Takei. However, I do own the Chinese dictionary used in making all of these pretty Chinese words possible!

****

Broken China

Dance Four: Arriving Chinese

Needless to say, the trip to Ren and Jun's all but humble abode was an uncomfortable one. Spending most of their time cramped together in one seat on the back of a heater-less bus wasn't exactly the most luxurious way to travel. Horohoro just thanked his lucky stars that the proximity of the two Chinese shamans surrounding him from both sides was enough to keep him from shivering. Who knew it got so cold in China in the winter?

However, in Ren's seat of the bus, things had been looking up. The previous night, having spent it with Horohoro being less annoying than usual, left him refreshed and ready to return to his home. Also, the prospect of having an extra punching bag (one that said "Ow!" and meant it) was one that he looked forward to very much. Oh yeah, and he supposed it would be fun to show Horohoro around. Educate him a bit. Hell, who was he kidding? He wanted to make a fool of the boy. It was, of course, one of his finest pleasures.

Save the fact, that the light in Horohoro's face as they passed certain spots of beauty in his own native land almost made him want to smile. Chuckle. But he was frozen to the spot for the moment, as Jun, instead, explained to the Ainu what he'd seen.

__

Damnit, Ren spat inwardly to himself as he crossed his arms. _What do I care, anyway? _His feelings of contempt were resurfacing. Well, just a little. Considering that adorable look on Horohoro's face as he tried to grasp the concept of the difference in the spoken Chinese styles was oh-so cute… 

"Kisama!" Ren kicked the side of the bus. Smoke was pouring out into the open, silent air around them. Obviously, the bus had broken down, leaving many of it's rider's stranded. And to our traveling trio (and of course Li Bailong and Bason), this second procrastination of their homecoming was much unwelcome. Unfortunately for them, as well, there were no other occupants of the bus than the driver. And we all know, bus drivers, much like Captains, go down with their vessel. In this case, the bus driver was draped over the steering wheel, bawling.

Jun sighed. She was seated under the token tree of the desolate land which their bus had chosen to stop in. She rubbed her hands over her bare arms, rubbing. Even though the sun was brightly shining down upon them, it was freezing.

Horohoro, on the other hand, was standing out in the open. The glare of the sun obviously didn't bother him any, because he was staring at the sky with a blank expression. Like he'd never seen it before.

Ren approached him, hands shoved in his pockets and his face buried deep into his muffler to conceal his pinking cheeks, not knowing himself whether he was blushing or if he was just tingeing from the cold. He stopped a foot short of Horohoro and looked up with him. "What the _hell_ are you looking at?"

"The sky. It's pretty in China."

"The sky is pretty everywhere."

"Not like it is here!"

Closing his eyes, the Chinese shaman decided not to argue about where the sky was prettier. But what made Horohoro's logic believe that this sky was more beautiful than any other? The thought was stolen from him as Horohoro plopped down onto the ground. He stretched his legs out and leaned his head back.

Ren, complying with his legs which were begging him to find resolve on the ground, sat beside him, crossing his arms almost in his lap. "Some luck we have, huh?" Horohoro started the conversation this time. "I mean, first your Father couldn't come pick us up, and then we had to share a room with only one bed because Jun refuses to sleep with another man. Now, the bus broke down in the middle of nowhere. Next thing you know it'll snow and we'll get snowed in in a cabin."

"Don't jinx us, you moron."

"Eh, sorry."

They both stared at the sky for a moment, each enjoying the peace beyond the fact that they were freezing what existed of their miniscule thirteen year-old rears off and that they were stuck in the middle of nowhere with Ren's sister and main spirit, a broken bus, and a driver who was now holding a formal funeral procession with his keys.

And this thought caused Ren, that's right, Tao Ren, to erupt into a giggle fit.

Horohoro's eyes widened immediately and he stared over at his once-leader, who had now clutched at his stomach because he had evolved said giggles into a roar of laughter. He narrowed his eyebrows at him. "What's so funny?"

"This!"

"What 'this?'"

"Our situation."

"Eh?"

"Isn't it just peculiar," Ren stopped himself from laughing for a moment for the spoken clarity he was so well known for. "That this entire trip has been nothing but a big screw up? It's like some bad omen. You must not be meant to be in China!" He couldn't help but laugh again.

"That's not funny!" Horohoro retorted half-heartedly angry. It was, in actuality, pretty funny.

Ren forced himself to calm down, so he took a big breath. They both sat for a moment or two, enjoying each other's company for the first time in.. never. It was nice and comforting, relaxed, but at the same time it made both of their stomachs churn.

Either that, or they were really hungry.

Both boys, in their minds, chose the latter.

"But it's been fun," Ren added about 3 minutes after he'd thought out loud about this big disaster of a trip. "I haven't been bored a single moment since you told me that you'd be coming with us. It's been just one big.. .. Vacation, I guess."

"Vacation from what?"

"I don't know. From normal life?"

"So this is paranormal?"

"No, baka," Ren's insult held no venom. "I mean that normally I wouldn't smile this much. Normally, on my way home, I'd be dreading every moment of it, almost shaking in my boots because of it."

"But we got rid of that problem!" Horohoro added happily. "We defeated your Dad, and he understands the power of our friendships with each other.. And everyone."

Ren shook his head. "That's not just it." He commented slowly. "It's just that.. Being at home, usually, a person feels at ease with themselves.. But when I come home, I feel like I'm being pressured to be perfect.. To be something I'm not."

"What are you not?"

__

You, Ren thought to himself. _I'm not you, and I'm not expressionistic, and I'm not so many things that you are that I wish I was. _"Perfect."

"Oh."

"What did you think I was going to say."

"I dunno. Male?"

"Kisama! I am male."

"I know, I know! Geez, you didn't have to get all upset I was just joking.

__

Retract that those above thoughts. I'm glad _I'm not Horohoro. I wouldn't be able to put up with myself._

"It'll all work out in the end."

"Stealing lines from Yoh…"

"Yeah, whatever. It still means the same thing, not matter whose mouth it was born from."

"You're right."

"I know."

"Baka."

****

Author's Comments :: Continuously banging head against tree. :: I'M--SO--SORRY--FOR--NOT--UPDATING--SOONER--BUT--MY--BRAIN--FARTED. Well, it did!! Actually, I had a lot going on. First of all, I had Driver's Ed, my PSATs, I had to make Halloween costumes, study for random tests, read the Scarlet Letter and, duh, have some time for myself as well. 

Anywhere, here's your chapter, all pretty and shiny and brand-spanking new, too, since more than half of what I had was cut out. I believe what I had before was a) stinking up the story and b) moving the plot along way too fast, little doggies.

But since I don't like to leave any stone unturned, here is the excerpt: 

__

Ren had time to think about it, and had done so from the moment they got off the bus to the moment they reached their household. Perhaps he just held Horohoro as a memoir of the time he'd spent in Tokyo? Yes, that most certainly had to be it. After all, the only other choice was…

No, no, no and no. He would refuse to believe that, even if it was, in a sense, true. There was no way in hell that he could be in love with Horohoro! He'd decided early in his life that his mission was not to love, but instead, to become Shaman King, and fulfill his wish and the hopes of the Tao Dynasty. And he absolutely, absolutely refused to consider that his heart had acted of it's own volition.

No, no, no and no!

Reproaching the matter at hand here, Ren shook out of his thoughts of love and, quite disgusted with himself, looked around the main lobby of which was his home. Jun was leading Horohoro into the main room, where, once before, he had defended his new friend, Ren, against the controlling power which was his father.

Horohoro remembered it like it was yesterday. Seeing things from this boy's eyes… It was hell in a hand basket, and it was no wonder that he decided to help out. Maybe it wasn't just because Yoh was going. In one night, he'd seen enough of Ren to know that he needed saving from something.. It only took one night to realize that he was going to have a friend. It only took one night to realize that he would have a leader and a teammate. It only took one night to realize that he was going to fall in…

Love?

Ren questioned himself. How can I think it so lightly? He looked around as Jun raised her hand to knock on the door. Didn't I just tell myself it would be impossible to fall in love with Horohoro? Her hand graced the wood and a tripled pang of knuckles against solidity resounded.

As the doors opened, and Ren stepped through, looking in on the room he hadn't seen since he'd held so much hatred in his heart, he felt a slight ease from his chest. Before him appeared his and Jun's father and mother, two people whom he hadn't seen in tenderness since the age of 2.

"Welcome home, darlings!" the mistress beckoned them in further, into the light. They took their steps forward, the expression on Ren's face, though once had been twitching, returned to it's normal state. Jun walked over to her mother and greeted her with a hug, while Ren set his singular bag on the ground. 

He knelt forward on his knee, before his father. There was a moment, filled with silence between men but many a chatter between women, while Lee Bailong looked on at his master.

While the greetings were short and simple between Ren and his father, Ren's mother made quite a procession of greeting Horohoro into their home for the second time. She'd had food prepared soon before their arrival, 

I might grab something for later use, but for now.. You have what I deleted. See how nice I am to you guys! I let you know my turmoil. I'm not perfect. @_@ And I hope no one else is, otherwise I made a complete full out of myself.

As for a status on 'The Bet'… I haven't written a single word since my preview. Don't kill me. Statuses on other stories.. Well, seeing as I'm focusing mainly on this one, it may take a while longer. I think 'Palmreading' has officially been nixed.. But I HAVE to do a Mantoh one day.. 'Holy Crap, I'm Gay Too,' is being edited, because I've only watched 2 episodes of Beyblade and really don't know the characters too well.. Dancing Around the Subject is so nice, but it's not coming to me, just like everything else, and Battle Cries is being restarted. Basically, I haven't done jack.

But now you have a chapter, and I hope to update soon. I'll make it before two weeks is up!! X_X;


	6. Dance Six: Rescuing Chinese

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Title Broken China

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Author Kyrie Sanctus

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Rating PG-13 for Shounen-ai situations.

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Begun September 27, 2003

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Finished ???

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Chapters 6/??

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Synopsis Unfortunately for Ren, Jun has invited Horohoro to accompany them to China. But perhaps, Ren's disgust at this situation is just a cover up for the feelings he hasn't realized he could have for the shaman of ice? A bit plotless, just a device for fluff. HoroRen.

****

Comments Well, the title does NOT refer to the many plates I've broken in trying to come up with an idea for a HoroRen story good enough to post on FF.net. Instead, it's about China. You know, the country? Broken. Not literally broken, but rather.. .. It's symbolism! Ren's feelings about Horohoro going to China with them are like.. Mixed, you know? The inspiration for this came from me buying a Chinese dictionary and looking up the word 'peach.' Yep. That's how it all got started.

****

Dedications this goes out to Tanjo, for being the one who made me interested in the Chinese language in the first place. Katie, for no darn reason. Krissy, for always being the little inspiration in my life, and whoever else writes HoroRen fanfics. Because I didn't want you to be alone anymore!

****

Disclaimer I own no rights to Shaman King, it's plots, or it's characters. Those are all belong to the masterful Hiroyuki Takei. However, I do own the Chinese dictionary used in making all of these pretty Chinese words possible!

****

Broken China

Dance Six: Rescuing Chinese

"You just _had_ to jinx us, didn't you?" Ren growled as he stared out the window of the cabin they recently chosen to take refuge in. And now the snow had reached the bottom of the windowsill and it hadn't even stopped yet.

Jun was curled up on the sofa across from the fire that was struggling to stay ablaze, as the chimney was allowing tiny snowflakes to flutter inside, only to soon be melted by the warmth of their active heat. Every few odd minutes a gale threatened to put the flame it it's rest.

Horohoro was on his knees in front of the fire, adding the logs he'd ventured out into the snow to retrieve. "How many times are you going to say that?" He groaned, tossing another piece of wood in. The fire flared but clamed quickly, washing another warmth over his face.

"I'll say it until this snow stops." Horohoro sighed and pushed himself to his feet, taking a seat beside Jun. Even thought Ren was freezing by the window, he didn't budge. Jun motioned for Bailong to bring her the radio that was sitting on the desk. He did as asked, and Jun started to search for a radio station. As the static cleared, they could hear a man in Chinese:

__

It seems the snow may be slowly lightening up, but as of now it looks like it's going to continue coming down well into the morning time. We're looking at a stopping time of around noon. In parts of eastern China it seems to be at least 3 feet deep, and has probably already snowed most of our listeners in by now. "You can say that again," Ren added callously before Jun shushed him. _-whether or not the snow is going to stop tomorrow at noon, we'll keep you posted._

As Jun switched off the radio, she rose to her feet. "Well," she exhaled, placing the radio on the coffee table beside the couch. "I'm going to bed. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Nee-san."

"'Night, Jun!"

As Jun entered the only bedroom the cabin offered, Ren pulled his scarf off, freeing his neck. He draped it over the chair in front of the desk and walked to the couch, pulling the large flannel blanket off of the arm. He grabbed the ends and released it, letting it unfold itself. He sat down, letting it extend over both his legs and Horohoro's. "Goodnight."

"'Night…"

When Ren woke up, he was alone on the couch. He pulled the blanket closer around him and enjoyed the warmth he was receiving from it. He turned to the side to notice that the fire had gone out. Groaningly , he thought _Where is that idiot?_ He stood up and walked to the desk, only to find a sheet of paper with a sloppily written note, addressed to him and his sister. Ren read it over. _Oh._

Out of firewood. Went to go find some.

-Horohoro

Ren placed the note to the side and looked at the clock. _8:30. _Ren sat back down on the couch, wrapping himself back in the blanket. He stared at the fireplace, where the cinders had even started to go black.

After what felt like hours, Ren glanced back over at the clock. _9:45.. Why isn't he back yet? _He stood and walked to the window. The snow had somewhat slowed, but it was still softly decorating the ground. Turning away from the desk, he picked up his scarf. "That idiot. I guess I'll have to go find him myself."

Picking up the pen, he jotted a note to Jun telling her where _he _had went, just in case she woke up before he came back with a frozen Ainu idiot. After tossing the pen down, he walked to the door, opening it.

As soon as the door had even been ajar, a burst of cold rough air which had been locked from the inside came rambling through. He jumped outside and slammed the door, immediately plunging into the knee-deep snow. "Kuso…"

He looked around, squinting his eyes against the gusts of wind which frequently forced themselves into Ren's face. He cursed under his breath again, and waddled forward. It wasn't easy. The snow basically trapped his movements. _How the hell did Horohoro get through this?! _With a grunt, Ren hoisted himself forward again, but his legs just sank deeper.

"KISAMA!!" Picking up a handful of snow, he tossed it into the distance that he couldn't see, and heard it smack upon something, undoubtedly a tree. _What the hell am I supposed to do?! I can't get through this snow.. _He pushed forward again, but the snow beneath him only made him fall to his knees. "Kuso.."

"AHH-CHOO!!" Horohoro covered his face with his hands, dropping all of the logs he'd been carrying. "Tch! Man!" He knelt down to pick them back up, using his snowboard to keep himself from topping over with the wind. "I think I'm catching a cold." As soon as he'd retrieved his fallen logs, he stood, taking one step before his leg plunged into the snow.

He frowned, and pulled it back out. It had been a long time since he had tried to walk on top of snow, so he was a bit rusty. He looked through the trees to find the way which he had come in, and spotted the clearing, since his foot-tracks had already been covered. "There we go.."

Ren had finally found a way to stay from falling into the snow, but he was growing tired from fighting the wind, which was blowing directly in his face. It wasn't until he found a clearing that he sat down in the shelter of a tree and a rock and exhaled. He looked around him.. Everything was white, but how did it still seem so dark?

He tried to hide his face even deeper in his muffler. It stung from where the snow had been whipping him in the face. He growled under his breath. _Why did I decide to look for that baka anyway?!_

As another few minutes passed, Ren's hopes were darted away, as the wind didn't seem to die down. He had two choices: either he could sit there and die, or he could keep going and die, and seeing as he was always the fighter, he pushed himself to his feet and trudged forward, a foot sinking deep in the cold and wet snow every so-often.

When he came across a larger spread of trees he smirked, figuring, if anything, Horohoro had gone in there to look for firewood. He took another step, and felt his feet on something firm. _Odd,_ he thought, as he placed his other foot upon it, realizing that he was just stepping on snow-covered ice. Deciding this could be an easier way of travel, he trudged forward.

That is, until…

Although he'd thought he'd found an exit, Horohoro had just made himself that much more lost. He frowned, suddenly wishing Kororo was there. He came across another spread of trees, which looked quite familiar, and stepped forward, his feet sliding a bit. "Eh! Ice." He looked up, however, and saw something pretty frightening.

Right smack dab in the middle of the ice, a hole, with two black-clad arms flinging around outside of it, with a shark fin bobbing up from under the water. Even with as thick as Horohoro could be, he immediately recognized it as Ren, and dashed over, cracking some ice under his feet. He winced as he reached the hole, noticing that it was about to widen itself.

Trying not to panic, he got to his knees as quickly as possible, dropping the wood beside him. He grabbed Ren's left hand, as the other hand already submerged. Clasping his hand to his forearm, he pulled as hard as he could, his knee sliding into the cold water slowly as the ice beneath him began to pull apart from it's frozen entity.

He groaned, and gave another pull, forcing Ren's upper body out the water. Ren immediately put his knee on the ice, and, with Horohoro's help, got himself the rest of the way out of the water. With Ren laying on top of him, Horohoro pushed them away from the hole as it broke open and allowed more space to itself, swallowing the logs Horohoro had gotten for their fire.

He exhaled, looking at the boy on top of him. "Are you alright?" The Chinese boy blinked, in utter shock of what had just happened. Horohoro grinned and sat up, pulling Ren up with him. As he did so, however, he heard him wince. "What's wrong?!"

"It's my ankle.." Ren frowned, looking down at his booted feet. "I think I twisted it when I fell in the ice." Horohoro pulled his wet pant-leg up to investigate, and, sure enough, his ankle was pretty swollen. He frowned and covered it again. "Kisama.." Ren kicked at the snow with his uninjured foot, and then tried to push himself up.

However, the foot he'd been putting pressure on flew out from beneath him, and he landed back in Horohoro's arms again. He growled to himself. "Maybe I should help you?" Horohoro lifted Ren and set him on a patch of snow beside them, and pushed himself to his feet, then reached down for Ren's hands. Ren took them, and, balancing on his one leg, was helped to his feet. They both frowned as he wobbled, not used to only using one foot, especially in the snow. "Hm. This isn't going to work."

"Well, what do you want me to do, then?! Stay here and freeze to death?!"

"No, of course not," Horohoro grinned and he picked up a few logs which rested beside them, and handed them to Ren. "Hold these, will ya?"

"How in the hell do you expect me to keep my balance on one foot while---- What the hell are you doing?!" Ren, while complaining, had been scooped into a pair of strong Ainu arms. Golden eyes almost instantly shot into the vision of wide blue ones, which were immediately accompanied by a smile.

"Well, you didn't think I'd try to make you walk like that, did you?"

"Horohoro.."

The Ainu blinked at the way his former leader had so tenderly said his name. He blushed, but tried to hide it in his collar as he started walking back towards the cabin. _Well, that was unexpected._

Ren, feeling somewhat defeated, for the fact that he had been knocked off of his feet, and disgraced himself in more ways than one, pouted and inconspicuously snuggled into the warmth of the boy who was carrying him.

Horohoro had put Ren on the couch, had removed his boots, helped him change his clothes, and had wrapped him up in more than one blanket, and was now getting the fire started. Of course, Jun had woken up and had heard all that had happened, and was now in the cabin's kitchen, trying to fix something warm for Ren to eat. She'd sent Bailong to get more firewood.

Once he'd had it ignited, the older boy stood up and sat in front of Ren. He'd changed his own clothes as well, since he'd gotten pretty wet and cold trying to pull Ren out of the ice. He pulled over a small stool, and took one of the pillows, placing it atop it. He gently lifted Ren's ankle, to elevate it. Then, he took a blanket Jun had brought to him from the bedroom, and covered his foot with it. He then sat beside him snuggling over into him since he was now just a big ball of spike-headed warmth.

The two sat watching the fire for more than a minute when Horohoro broke the silence, which he usually seemed to do. "You still haven't thanked me." Ren was surprised by this statement, not only because it was true, but because he'd forgotten about all the things that had happened, really-- Horohoro had gone out to find firewood for _him_, he saved _him_, he carried _him_ home. Is anyone else noticing a trend here?

At this point the frowned, because he realized he really didn't have a way to properly thank Horohoro other than with words. If it hadn't been for him, then he would most likely have been dead, and all that time he had been giving him trouble about having come with he and his sister to China. "Horohoro, I…"

"No, it's okay. Tao Ren doesn't apologize. It's just not in your nature."

"You're wrong."

"Eh?"

"You're wrong."

"How am I----"

Before his sentence was finished, Horohoro's lips were closed by another set brushing upon his, another set of hands on his, another chest pressed against his own. Horohoro's mind raced, his heartbeat quickened, and slowly, he closed his eyes.

But not for long, considering the kiss was over as lashes met lashes. 

Both boys turned from each other, blushing deeply.

"Uh.. … … You're welcome?"

"No problem.

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Author's Notes And it's done!! Chapter 6 is complete, after all that toil and hard work, and I hope it's worth it, since I tried to make it so long so everyone would be happy. Unfortunately, as much as I would love it, I can't run this fanfic forever.. As a matter of fact, there will probably only be one or two more dances.. ^^; But, I have an ending planned and also, a special additional chapter as a thanks for everyone who has reviewed and put up with me and my fickle muse.

Oh yeah. Happy Birthday, Horohoro! I meant to do something for you, my love, but I was just.. @_@; Ugh, it's been rough. I'll probably give you a late birthday present, but never fear, because I still love you!

Stay tuned for dance 7, don't forget to review and keep being such good little readers! ^^


	7. Dance Seven: Working Chinese

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Title Broken China

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Author Kyrie Sanctus

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Rating PG-13 for Shounen-ai situations.

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Begun September 27, 2003

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Finished ???

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Chapters 7/??

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Synopsis Unfortunately for Ren, Jun has invited Horohoro to accompany them to China. But perhaps, Ren's disgust at this situation is just a cover up for the feelings he hasn't realized he could have for the shaman of ice? A bit plotless, just a device for fluff. HoroRen.

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Comments Well, the title does NOT refer to the many plates I've broken in trying to come up with an idea for a HoroRen story good enough to post on FF.net. Instead, it's about China. You know, the country? Broken. Not literally broken, but rather.. .. It's symbolism! Ren's feelings about Horohoro going to China with them are like.. Mixed, you know? The inspiration for this came from me buying a Chinese dictionary and looking up the word 'peach.' Yep. That's how it all got started.

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Dedications this goes out to Tanjo, for being the one who made me interested in the Chinese language in the first place. Katie, for no darn reason. Krissy, for always being the little inspiration in my life, and whoever else writes HoroRen fanfics. Because I didn't want you to be alone anymore!

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Disclaimer I own no rights to Shaman King, it's plots, or it's characters. Those are all belong to the masterful Hiroyuki Takei. However, I do own the Chinese dictionary used in making all of these pretty Chinese words possible!

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Broken China

Dance Seven: Working Chinese

Five whole minutes had passed since Ren and Horohoro had kissed, and already a world of thoughts had passed through each's ear and out the other. It was amazing to the both of them how many times one stitch in time could be replayed over and over again. That was, of course, until none other than Tao Jun decided to interrupt them by bringing in a tray, stacked with 2 bowls of piping hot chicken broth.

As she handed the bowls to each of them, ignoring the blush on their faces, thinking it was from the cold of the outdoors as they had both just been there, she commented on the food. "Sorry, it was all there was in that primitive kitchen. We have 33 kitchens at home, don't we, Ren?" She smiled and covered a part of him that was exposed with a blanket. "Eat up." And then re-exited the room.

Horohoro, thankful Jun hadn't suspected anything of the two of them, slowly started his meal, eyes darting every now and then to meet Ren's, which were doing the exact same dance. He was just about to comment on the bland taste of the chicken broth when Ren's deep voice interrupted his eating and his train of thought. "You know, Horohoro," Ren said, taking another sip of his broth quickly, not giving Horohoro a chance to respond. "I think I've changed my mind about you coming to China with us."

The Ainu boy raised a brow, slurping up some of his own food. "What changed your mind?"

Ren paused for a moment, to look over to the ice shaman, a bit of broth rolling down his chin from his lips which were too full to hold any more until he swallowed. "The fact that, I think, perhaps.. I might like you."

Horohoro couldn't help it, and spat his mouthful of nourishment towards the fire. "You what-?!"

"Kisama! Calm down," Ren spat, a layer of blankets sliding off of his shoulder. He noticed the blush on Horohoro's face but decided to explain himself anyway. "The thing is…" His eyes darted to the side again. This was actually going to be difficult for him. He was an expert shaman, but when dealing in the matters of love.. These things were better left alone, in his eyes. "No matter how horrible a shaman you are, you always put your all into it. And y.. you saved me out there, when I fell in and.. Even when I slipped and fell in the kitchen, you helped me up. And you gave me the bed in the hotel.." Horohoro watched him in anticipation. "I guess what I'm trying to say is.. You're not so bad, Horohoro. You can be annoying and obnoxious, but not everyone can be perfect."

"Like you?"

"Kisama! Did I say anything about me?!"

Horohoro grinned. "Well, Ren, if you want to know the truth I stopped thinking you were so bad a long time ago. Sure, you can be pig-headed and gloat about how many pairs of 33 you have, and claim you're better than everyone else and just be snobby and downright rude to anyone who---"

"KISAMA!!"

"Hey, hey! Chill out.. The thing is.. Under all that, you're a nice guy."

"… This isn't exactly the conversation we should be having after I kissed you, is it?"

"No, it's not, but it's better than nothing." Horohoro finished his broth and wiped his mouth on his sleeve, sighing in contentment. He leaned back onto the soft backing of the couch and looked over to Ren, who had changed his gaze from him to the bowl in his hands. "What made you do that, anyway, huh, Ren?"

Ren groaned inwardly and stood up, all the blankets falling off of him. "I think we should go get ready to leave, don't you? There's supposed to be another bus coming around here, soon, perhaps we can get home _finally_." He turned and walked into the kitchen, but Horohoro followed, not willing to give up that easily.

"Don't avoid the question!" He called after him as they both made their ways to the sink, Ren dropping his bowl in it first, followed by Horohoro. Jun had used another path out of the kitchen and back into the small bedroom with Pailong. "You can't run from my questions, I want an answer."

"There isn't an answer. Pass me the dish cleanser."

"What, you're going to wash dishes?"

"Baka, what else is there to do? Pass it to me!"

Horohoro did as he was asked but leaned closer to Ren, using his elbows as support on the counter. "I'm not going to leave you alone until you tell me, you know that."

Ren squirted the soap into the water, letting it bubble up a little more before turning on the faucet. There were a few more pieces to be washed, and he moved them into the sink as well. He had decided long before this that he wasn't going to answer Horohoro's question. 

"Why?" Horohoro pressured on, sliding closer to Ren, making the Chinese shaman a little more tense. He scrubbed at the dishes more vigorously. "Ren, tell me why." Again, his question was ignored, the darker haired of the two pouring all of his concentration into the task at hand.

He wasn't about ready to give up. He grabbed Ren's hands out of the sink and pulled them away from the dishes, holding them in front of him, looking into those golden eyes of a comrade. Ren had an expression of surprise momentarily, but quickly phased back into a solid and stern frown. "Tell me. Why did you kiss me?"

There it was, standing right in front of him, the cause of his anguish for at least the past 6 months, yet also the cause of many smiles and much laughter. And perhaps, the being that would haunt him for the rest of his life, wearing a pleading look on his face. However that the question of asking Horohoro why he wanted to know this answer so badly slipped Ren's mind, one question rang loud and clear: _What am I supposed to tell him?_

"I don't know why." Ren lied to Horohoro, as well as to himself, pushing out any other reasons that might have popped into his mind. "I just did. My attempt at trying to be as impulsive as you are."

Horohoro had to raise a brow. And he had to ask. "Why are you trying to be as impulsive as I am?"

"One of the many qualities I adore about you."

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Adore.. His thoughts lingered on that word for a moment. _"One of the many qualities I _adore _about you." _"What are you talking about?"

"Horohoro."

"Ren?"

The Chinese tore his hands from the other boy's grip, placing them, covered in soap and all, on his cheeks, pulling him closer to him for another kiss. Horohoro, a little less surprised by this kiss than the last, made his move to wrap his arms around Ren's waist to pull him that much closer.

As their lips departed one another's Ren looked up into honest blue eyes while Horohoro stared down into cat-like golden eyes, and the rest of the world seemed to fall at peace. That is, until they heard the door of the bedroom close. Ren once again tore his body away from Horohoro's. The Ainu was about to make a dash for the door when, yes…

As Ren's hands had been submerged in the sudsy water before Horohoro had pulled them out, they had dripped onto the floor, making it slippery. As Horohoro was about to Ren, his feet slid from under him. Being the more skilled of the two, Ren's quick reflexes forced him to reach down and grab his arm, holding him up from the floor before he hit it.

"Hmph. I guess it was my turn to play the prince."

Horohoro used Ren's arm to get himself back to his feet, stammered a thanks, and then walked into the other room, leaving Ren to look out the window with a satisfied smirk on his face and gaze at the pre-fallen snow.

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Author's Notes FORGIVE ME!! My god, I feel like such a jerk for not updating and not _worrying_ about updating in so long! You must hate me and have forgotten me by now! Well.. If you haven't.. Thanks. And if you have.. I'm wondering how you're reading this. O_O; Anyway, to break the news to the lot of you, I didn't do absolutely nothing while I was away.. I actually had surgery on the 2nd of January. I had a large ovarian cyst removed.. Weird, huh? Yeah, it was pretty weird..

Anyway, that's not what you want to hear about. _You_, oh-esteemed-reader-of-mine, want to hear about what's to come for future chapters, do you not? Of course you do! While I have absolutely no idea what's going to happen until I start writing, you can expect this story to wind down within the next 2 or 3 chapters. There's also that bonus I was talking about, but we can get into that later, can't we? Yes, yes we can. 


	8. Dance Eight: Kissing Chinese

**Title** Broken China  
**Author** Kyrie Sanctus  
**Rating** PG-13 for Shounen-ai situations.  
**Begun** September 27, 2003  
**Finished** ?  
**Chapters** 8?  
**Synopsis** Unfortunately for Ren, Jun has invited Horohoro to accompany them to China. But perhaps, Ren's disgust at this situation is just a cover up for the feelings he hasn't realized he could have for the shaman of ice? A bit plotless, just a device for fluff. HoroRen.  
**Comments** Well, the title does NOT refer to the many plates I've broken in trying to come up with an idea for a HoroRen story good enough to post on Instead, it's about China. You know, the country? Broken. Not literally broken, but rather.. .. It's symbolism! Ren's feelings about Horohoro going to China with them are like.. Mixed, you know? The inspiration for this came from me buying a Chinese dictionary and looking up the word 'peach.' Yep. That's how it all got started.  
**Dedications** This goes out to all of my reviewers who have been with me through the beginning and hopefully don't hate me for waiting a year to update! XD  
**Disclaimer** I own no rights to Shaman King, it's plots, or it's characters. Those are all belong to the masterful Hiroyuki Takei. However, I do own the Chinese dictionary used in making all of these pretty Chinese words possible!

**Broken China  
**Dance Seven: Working Chinese

(---(...)---)

"Well, the snow has cleared up," Horohoro analyzed as he stepped outside the cabin for the first time since he'd ventured out to find firewood, which had been almost 2 days ago. (They'd found the stockpile of wood outside the cabin the day before; Ren smacked Horohoro for overlooking it.) The snow had stopped floating down onto the ground, and he could swear he could see a little bit of sun poking out from behind the clouds. He stretched, getting a good inhalation of fresh air before turning back around to Ren, who was situated in the doorway, leaning up against the frame.

The Chinese eyes he met were hard, as usual, but not angry. "That's good news," he said flippantly, adding a little bit of his natural Ren sarcasm with it. "Maybe we can get out of here and finally get to our destination. This little trip of ours has gone on long enough." He was about to turn and walk away when Horohoro grabbed his arm. "Hn?" His grunt was a question.

"Why don't you come with me?"

"Come with your where exactly?"

"To play in the snow, where else?" Horohoro thumbed back at the white scenery behind him. His blue eyes were expectant, anxious and waiting. For a moment, he reminded Ren of a small puppy tugging on it's owners pant leg. "C'mon, please?"

Ren rolled his eyes and tugged his arm away, stepping inside to get his coat and scarf. When he returned, his hand was quickly snatched into that of an Ainu, and he was tugged away, nearly tripping over himself. "Kisama! Stop running! The snow isn't going to melt before you get there!"

The taller boy stopped suddenly, the smaller slamming into his back. "KISAMA! Why did you stop!" He peered out from behind Horohoro, his eyes widening. "Oh."

The reason had been the beautiful view overlooking the small cliff they'd found themselves on. The snow had blanketed all of the land, and most of the mountains they could see in the distance. Even the once-lush greenery was covered in the fluffy white stuff.

The smile on Horohoro's face was evident as he spoke. "Na, Ren?" Another grunt. "You wanna try that kissing thing some more?" He almost giggled until he was shoved from behind, rolling down the not-so-steep hill they'd been perched on.

By the time he rolled to the bottom, he began laughing, only to be belted by a few snowballs, which were accompanied with Ren's voice yelling his ever-popular 'Kisama!'

If it's a snowball war he wants, it's a snowball war he'll get! Horohoro scooped up as much snow as one hand could handle, patted it into a perfect ball and tossed it as hard as he could at Ren.

For a moment, the snowball onslaught stopped, and Ren rolled down the hill, finding his landing right on top of the Ainu at the bottom.

As they collided with the resounding 'umph,' Ren scooped up a handful of snow and dropped it in Horohoro's face. He was about to roll off when he felt the hands of the one he'd squashed holding him down. The ice shaman shook his head violently, clearing the snow out of his visage. He then grinned up to him.

Without another moment's notice, Horohoro had kissed Ren again, and Ren was hardly complaining. It was just like the previous ones--chaste, but long, and filled with love. After a moment or two, the one on top broke the kiss, looking down into the blue eyes beneath him. "What does all this mean?"

The ice shaman smiled and grabbed the wrists of the one above him, using that leverage to flip them over, rolling on top of Ren. "That means I like you." He kissed him again, more quickly this time. "And that means... I hope you like me back." He bit his lip, waiting his response.

Immediately Ren wanted to push the big lug off of him and run to the safety of the cabin. However, this was an impossibility, because even though he was smaller, he was much stronger, but his wrists were being held captive and his legs were in no position to push anyone off, considering that Horohoro's legs had been wedged between them. His face flushed, and he turned his head to the side, spitting out his words as if they were a foul tasting food, although that did not cheapen the meaning of the words "I like you back."

Seemingly, that was all Horohoro needed to hear to release him, and he placed a kiss on Ren's cheek before hopping up and stretching again, more out of conditioned reflex than need. "Let's go look around before we go back. Just make sure to avoid frozen lakes this time."

(---(...)---)

It was after dark before they returned, both a little bit wet and a little bit tired. They stripped themselves of their wet over-clothing and had excused themselves to change. When they stepped back out, Jun was on the couch. "Good news, you two. It seems there'll be a bus coming by in the morning. I can't believe we had to wait out here this long. Anyway, I think I'm going to retire for now. There's still some soup in the kitchen if you're hungry. Goodnight."

"Goodnight," they responded in unison, looking to each other as they did so with confused expressions.

As she retreated, giggling, Horohoro flopped onto the couch, Ren sitting beside him. "We should go to sleep as well. I don't want to miss the bus out of this wretched hole." He grabbed the blanket and pulled it down over the both of them, flattening the Ainu's hair.

As the elder boy surfaced from drowning in the fabric, his face was met with Ren's. "Oh, goodnight kiss?" It was more of a statement than a question, though, because he didn't give a moment to respond, pressing his lips neatly to Ren's.

It was their fourth kiss and it was becoming almost too natural.

As they parted, Ren let himself lay across Horohoro's lap, his face finding refuge in the ironically warm ice shaman's neck, pulling the blanket up and around them.

(---(...)---)

**A/N:** Is shot. A lot. By you guys. XD

I deserve to be shot, really. I have this knack for starting things that I never finish. So, I'm on my knees begging for your forgiveness! ;o; I've been through so many fandoms since the last time I updated it's not even funny. (As a matter of fact, this chapter was extremely difficult to write because... I'm so into a Star Wars fandom right now.) w I hope you'll forgive me and take this chapter as an apology!

I'm surprised I could even keep this chapter as in-character as it is. XD

I'm going to try my hardest to finish this, so please, don't give up on me! I'M BREAKING THE HABIT! And I can do it with your support! So keep reviewing, and I'll keep loving you for it!

My separators WERE little Harusames, but SUCKS and won't let me use them. So instead, I'm just using the TIE fighter ones I use for my Star Wars fics. XDDDDDD


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